KXNG Crooked (also known as Crooked I) came through #DXLive Thursday (December 7) and was able to dispel the rumors of Eminem’s Revival being a double-album. The Slaughterhouse vet poured fuel on the fire when he shared a fake tracklist on Twitter featuring a number of Hip Hop heavyweights. During the conversation with editor-in-chief Trent Clark and DXLive host Marcel Williams, he clarified his reason for posting the artwork.
“I just asked a simple question,” Crooked explained. “I guess the Stans decided to go on the attack. They said, ‘Wait a minute. If he’s tweeting it, this must be what it is.’ And I’m like, ‘Yo, I’m just asking a question.'”
The West Coast-repping rhymer also gave his honest reaction to the guest spots featured on Revival‘s tracklist and put an end to the double-album theory.
“What does Em have to prove at this point?” he asked. “He can rap with anybody in the game, so obviously when he creates an album he has a vision for it. When I look at the tracklist, it doesn’t bother me but it seemed to bother a lot of the fans. People were hitting me up telling me like, ‘Yo, he used to be anti-pop and now he has a lot of pop influences on his record.’ What I look at it like is I wanna hear Em. It’s been a minute. I don’t have to hear him with a million dudes rapping. I don’t wanna hear that really. I wanna hear Em tell his story, where he’s at, what space he’s in now. And you know, most of those people are singers. It’s not like there’s a lot of rapping going on outside of what I’m here for — Marshall Mathers. I personally wasn’t really trippin’.
AD LOADING...
“Hate to break it to y’all,” he added. “Disc 2 doesn’t exist. It’s not real.”
Later in the interview, Crooked explained the music he makes is his “therapy” and he believes Em is using his own music in a similar way. When the topic of expectations for Shady’s material came up, the Good Vs. Evil MC was quick to defend his Shady Records brethren, and Revival’s lead single, “Walk On Water.”
“There’s wordplay,” he said. “There’s mechanics. There’s metaphors. There’s punchlines. Come on y’all.”
“I believe that’s part of the genius,” he continued.” I’m not just saying that because I’m attached to Em or Shady Records. I’m just speaking as an artist. The next level of your progression in your flow … the next step is finding pockets that aren’t usually there on the first listen. The unorthodox pockets that you’re hitting in the beat. That’s just natural progression of trying to challenge yourself to do something that you haven’t done. A lot of the times when he’s hitting those pockets, me as a technical writer, I understand that pocket is ill. But to the average listener, it’s like watching a boxing match with a southpaw fighter. He’s awkward. He’s coming at you from different angles and it doesn’t flow as smoothly. That’s the whole thing. From a writer standpoint, I fully respect but I do understand when things go over people’s heads.”
AD LOADING...
Eventually the conversation veered to Slaughterhouse, and the issues between Quavo and Joe Budden, but Crooked added at the end, “Quit worrying about Em. Em is one of the best rappers of all time.”
KXNG Crooked’s Good Vs. Evil 2: The Red Empireis expected to arrive Friday (December 8).
Watch the full episode of #DXLive (also featuring DJ Carisma) above.
